Love

a second mother November 6, 2008

My niece wants to come live with me. She has been wanting to do that for some time now. For some time now I have told her that my door is open. Now I am hit with this great possibility. Can I really be a second mom to a teenager?

I tell her there are different rules in my house like we don’t yell, we talk. Like, I don’t have a TV and if we get one she can’t watch it all day long. Like she has to get a job. She asks if I will drive her to school, I tell her she has to take the bus.

She is the middle one, she is the one that can be like me. We have an understanding. My dad understands her completely. He is reliving my teenage years again. he tells me he doesn’t yell at her anymore. She anticipates it. I tell her we come from a family of yellers. I had to leave to not continue to do it. She tells me she wants to leave, too. I tell her it is better to gain the tools and try to work it out or else you will be like me gone for so many years. The youngest looks the most like me. I see myself as thirteen when I look at her but she is happy. She dances for days. Genetics can be so amazing.

The middle one, the one that wants to live with me thinks I wold be a great mom coz I bring her chicken soup, watch Project Runway with her and talk in different accents. And even though I know these aren’t the top mom qualities I smile.

I am different member of the family now. I am older, I am free to be myself. My dad tells the neighbor if you see a girl walking around that’s my daughter. And yes, they still call me la niña but I am no longer just that. And we will see what more I will become.

the end.

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One Response to “a second mother”

For some reason my sidebar widget says your blog was last updated 38 years ago!! Ironic that I clicked to this post… no evidence of any generation gap from what I’m reading though… you must be a time traveller.